Tigers prey on Panthers in cross-county matchup

Published 5:00 pm Tuesday, October 9, 2012

MONUMENT Fired-up and unleashed, the Dayville/Monument Tigers dominated during last Friday afternoons matchup against a tough Prairie City Panther team.

The high-scoring game ended at 60-36 in favor of the Tigers.

When you come to Tiger country, youd better be ready, noted one young Tiger fan.

Tiger coach Nathaniel Ashley said he went into the game knowing that his team must contain the outside and stop the sweep.

The Tigers tripled their coachs order. Not only did they contain the outside and eliminate the sweep, they dominated the running game and unleashed a well-organized passing offense that surprised the banged-up Panther defense.

Tiger senior Jake Buce and junior Jamen Schafer were relentless as they frustrated the Panther defense. Buce had 235 yards receiving with two touchdowns, and 30 yards rushing with two touchdowns.

Shafer had 110 yards receiving with two touchdowns, and 35 yards rushing with one touchdown.

Colten Winters had 410 yards passing with five touchdowns, and 75 yards rushing with one touchdown.

Jeremy Hand had 45 yards receiving with one touchdown.

Our defense did a great job of group tackling and not letting any plays outside our ends. I was very happy with the way we played on both sides of the ball. We need to clean up on unnecessary penalties, coach Ashley.

Prairie City coach Rod Willet came away from the loss with a to-do list for his players.

We had a lack of commitment on defense, he said. This is going to be a major focus in the upcoming weeks.

Struggles in that area allowed the Tigers to put 60 points on the score board.

Late in the game, the Panthers passing offense dialed in, but as coach Willet said, The passing offense was effective, just a little too late.

Statistics were not available for the Panthers early this week, but one player who stood out was Cole Hoberg, showing leadership and poise throughout the game.

Cole shifted the momentum to the Panthers on multiple occasions during the game, igniting the offense.

Mack Clark a 146-pound junior, drew attention on defense, delivering some big hits that gave the crowd a thrill.

Fernando Ceja also was a key player in the Panther running game, pounding the ground to contribute to Prairie Citys 36 points.

Rest, recuperation, and regrouping are in order this week for Prairie City in preparation for Fridays homecoming game against the Adrian Antelopes.

The Tigers will be at home in Monument on Friday, hosting Harper/Huntington for another afternoon showdown.